Language Most Foul
by SilverRayan
Summary: Starscream hates English. It has none of the elegance of Cybertronian, and, deciding to ditch English and speak only in his native tongue, the SIC has reminded the troops that his screechy voice wasn't always so screechy... much to his mates' chagrin.
1. Chapter 1

Language Most Foul

Starscream was in a foul mood. Most would claim that that was normal for the Air Commander, and for the most part they would be right. But this went beyond the pretense he put on for the troops. He had snapped at Thundercracker and Skywarp in the privacy of the trine's quarters. He had never yelled at them like that before. Sure, he was an aft to everyone else, but never to his mates. When he was a slagger to them in public it was always an act to keep others from suspecting the true extent of their bond. Thunder and Sky always knew that it was fake. But for him to snap at them in private... Yeah, he was pissed. The worst part, however was that he had no idea why.

It had been building some time. It was almost like an itch in his processor, one that he couldn't get rid of. It was beyond irritating and kept insisting that something was very wrong. He turned the past few orns over in his mind, trying to find the cause. Today's trigger had been Skywarp shortening his name to "Screamer". In truth, he didn't mind the nickname. In Seeker Cant his nickname meant "one who sings proudly". Wait a klik... Seeker Cant. That was the problem. His name sounded wrong coming from his mate's lips in English. It was warped, distorted and ugly.

Looking back, the young Commander could see that he had grown frustrated with the excessive use of the hideous, primitive language. He couldn't understand how human  
Culture had pervaded their lives so completely that they had forsaken their own beautiful languages in favor of that of the fleshbags'. The slagging thing had even twisted his own voice. His vocals weren't meant to produce such short, distorted sounds. Well, he wouldn't stand for it. He would fix this if it killed him.

-

Megatron frowned. Something wasn't right. They were currently half way through a tactical meeting, discussing plans for their next raid. Normally, his treacherous Second would have pointed out dozens of perceived flaws, if for no other reason than to irritate the warlord. This silence was disconcerting, as was the superior grin the Seeker wore. That smile generally meant that Starscream was planning something chaotic. Optics shifting to Soundwave, Megatron silently asked if the telepath had picked up on any treacherous vibes from Starscream. Much to Soundwave's annoyance, He couldn't get past the SIC's mental shields. He had never been able to, which was why the SIC's plots always came as a surprise. Catching his leader's look, the sapphire mech shook his head slightly.

Trying to nip whatever his least loyal soldier was planning in the bud, the tyrant said,

"Well, Starscream, do you have any comments? You're usually so full of them." Most mechs in the assembly hall braced their audios against the rant they were sure was coming. They were caught off guard when, instead of the usual high pitched shriek, an almost musical sound flowed from Starscream's vocalizer. It caught them so by surprise that it took most of the mechs a moment to realize that they hadn't understood a word that Starscream had said. Clearly he was speaking another language; one that they should have had no problems translating. Unfortunately it had been a long time since any of the Decepticons had heard it spoken (or saw it in written form).

Megatron blinked at his smug second.

"Say that again." It wasn't a request. Rolling his optics in exasperation, Starscream repeated himself.

"I said, "No, I have no comment. You will disregard anything I say, so I will not waste my valuable time pointing out errors, even if the ground formation is spread so far apart a five stellar cycle old squishy could navigate through it with ease."" He still refused to speak in English, making his comrades scramble to translate the Cybertronian words. Soundwave, however, caught everyone by surprise when he answered Starscream's comment using Cybertronian as well. apparently the Seeker's voice wasn't the only one that had been altered by the flesh creatures' language; the signature monotone of the TIC smoothed into a soothing bass.

"Starscream: explain flaw." The Air Commander had to stop his jaw from falling open. Soundwave, of all mechs, was taking him seriously.

The rest of the army sat in stunned silence, listening as two of their top officers carried out a civil debate in what they now recognized as their, for lack of a better term, mother tongue. They had a hard time following what was being said. Only part of this was because of how unfamiliar they were with their language. The other part was that they were too busy fantasizing about those gorgeous voices. Even Megatron was paying more attention to Starscream's voice than the actual conversation. It was much more pleasing to listen to now. His voice was a light tenor with an almost husky undertone. Many a mech could recall fantasizing about that voice crying out in pleasure before the Earth language had warped it. Bright optics focused on both mechs, and audios strained to record the conversation, which seemed to be winding down.

Nestled in the back of the room two Seekers watched their mate, who was oblivious to the looks of lust he and Soundwave were receiving. They seethed silently, already planning what would happen to the first mech foolish enough to make a move on their mate.


	2. Chapter 2

Language Most Foul Chapter 2

Soundwave, Starscream decided, was an excellent conversationalist. As long as they avoided topics such as Megatron's numerous failings the second and third in command could get along quite well. And it pleased Starscream to no end that the CCO had forsaken speaking the humans' primitive languages. What was even more amusing was that some of their comrades still had to scramble to understand what they were saying. Smirking, the Air Commander focused on their current topic: how Kaon's early politics influenced Praxian art in the Golden Era. His companion knew a surprising amount about art, and though it was not Starscream's area of expertise it was still a fascinating discussion. The pair was so engaged in their conversation that neither noticed the hungry optics watching them.

Skywarp growled. Watching his mate and superior chat obliviously was grating on his last nerve. He was not jealous of Soundwave. On the contrary, he pitied the mech. The boom box had no idea how many mechs were fantasizing not only about his admittedly delicious body, but also about how his musical voice would sound screaming their names. No, it was the mechs dreaming about Starscream that had him on edge. And his usually observant mate was completely oblivious! Sky could feel Thundercracker tense beside him. Searching for what could have caused his usually cool headed mate to tense, he quickly found the cause of his ire. Motormaster was practically 'facing their mate with his optics! If the brute thought that he could get close enough to their Star to make a move then he was in for a painful surprise.

He stood in the corner of the Rec Room, watching the sapphire mech chat cordially with the Air Commander. He was careful to keep his gaze on his mech, and not the SIC, lest his jealous wingmates get the wrong idea. He had had no idea how possessive the seekers were of each other until he saw Thundercracker, of all mechs, seemingly contemplating Motormaster's demise. He had no desire to get his face ripped off, thank you very much. Instead, he focused on the TIC, content to listen to his smooth voice speak in their native tongue. He was a little embarrassed to admit that he understood less than a quarter of what they were saying. It had been vorns since he had last heard Cybertronian spoken, coupled with the fact that both mechs had delicious voices that made it difficult to concentrate on the actual words. He would have to practice Cybertronian (and being able to concentrate on what Soundwave was saying, as opposed to just listening to him speak) but for now he would watch, and think about how to capture his prize.

Starscream was bemused. He did not let it show, of course, preferring to look on in amusement as his mates shot filthy looks at the room in general. Mechs quickly averted their gazes from the seekers, deciding that picking a fight with the slightly deranged wing-second and wing-third was not worth it, at least at the moment. The red seeker didn't protest as his purple trinemate wrapped his arms around his waist, and a purple flash of light accompanied by a slight jerk warped the three out of the Rec Room. The Air Commander opened his mouth the question his mates, but found his lips being thoroughly ravished by his blue lover. He submitted willingly, deciding that questions could wait until later.

Skywarp watched his mates hungrily, optics drinking in every delicious detail. He could see flashes of glossa dancing together as the two kissed. Thundercracker pulled Starscream's glossa into his mouth, sucking on it gently. Star moaned softly, hands dancing over his lover's plating. Thunder trailed his hands gently over the red seeker's wings, tweaking ailerons and stroking hotspots. Starscream gasped, and pushed his wings into his mate's skilled hands, wordlessly begging for more. He didn't notice as he was guided to the berth until Thundercracker gently pressed him down. Skywarp moved to join them, pulling Screamer's hands over his head. It took a moment for the movement to penetrate the haze of lust, and by the time he realized what had happened, he was firmly chained to the berth.

"What is the meaning of this?" He pulled on his bindings, trying to twist his way out. When the chains held firm, he glared at his mates, demanding an answer. The two just smirked at him.

"Relax Star," Skywarp purred. "We just want to show you how much we adore you. You know you love it when we have you bound." And Starscream did love it, but he would never admit it out loud.

"Let us take care of you Star. We've had so little time together lately, and we miss you." Starscream gave up his halfhearted protests at his thoughtful lover's words. Sensing the changed, Skywarp and Thundercracker pounced. Starscream's last coherent thought that night was that he would enjoy paying his mates back tenfold.


	3. Chapter 3

The auditorium was silent. It was the kind of silence that was usually reserved for Megatron's speeches about the Glory of the Decepticon Cause. But every mech in the room was quiet for a different reason. Starscream and Soundwave were both present. Everyone was hoping that one – or both – would give a speech. Starscream radiated smug satisfaction. Soundwave, although he didn't show it, was very unnerved. He was also amused, however, as Starscream's mates had taken to flanking him wherever he went. Skywarp had actually _snapped_ at Megatron when the gunformer had tried to order him off the stage. Megatron had been so surprised that he'd actually taken a step back and was unable to reprimand the seeker before he had slipped back into his position at Starscream's left wing.

Soundwave had to admit they had a surprising friendship. He had never gotten along with the Air Commander, even on Cybertron. But their shared interest in reviving their beloved language had opened the door to friendship. They found that they actually had a lot in common; both were scientifically inclined, albeit in different fields; they both had a great love of literature and art, and valued family above all else (yes, Soundwave could admit to himself if he had to choose between Megatron and his creations his mechlings would win every time). The third-in-command enjoyed their debates, and was rather surprised to learn that Starscream was tactically brilliant, and had valid points about the operation of the army. His screechy English often drove mechs to cut conversations short or tune him out, so the seeker would yell, which made him look foolish. It was a vicious cycle. Or had been. Now mechs went quiet whenever Star – or either of them, really – even looked like he was thinking about speaking.

"This is a waste of time," Starscream hissed softly. "They won't be able to understand our reports. None of these imbeciles have bothered to relearn Cybertronian."

"Agreed. But Lord Megatron wills it."

"Frag Megatron." Improved though his relationship with the third-in-command and the crew may be, Starscream still despised their Lord.

* * *

Lord Megatron was watching the proceedings with anger. He was not used to being usurped. Starscream's ploy had worked brilliantly. They tyrant was tempted to slag the seeker, but Soundwave was endorsing his foolishness. The pair were unreasonably close now; the only others they spoke to outside of each other were the cassettes and Starscream's trine mates. Hurting the Vosian would upset Soundwave, who had never approved of beating the fool nearly to death. And while he could handle his treasonous 2IC, he was not entirely sure he would survive an alliance between his top two officers. Besides, he would look like fool if he assaulted Starscream for speaking their native language.

Noting the restlessness of the crowd, Megatron pushed those thoughts aside. He had a plan to deal with his officers, one that he would start enforcing right now.

"Decepticons! The time has come for another raid! With our new weapon completed we will easily defeat the Autoscum and take this miserable planet for our own!" The Decepticons cheered. Energon had been getting low, and they had feared that they would have to start rationing. "Unfortunately, as no one can understand Starscream currently all fliers will report to Blitzwing for their orders. Soundwave, give control of the comms to Reflector." Shocked grumbling broke out in the crowd. Only once, after one of Starscream's assassination attempts had almost succeeded, had Megatron revoked the flier's command. He had _never_ taken away Soundwave's. The mechs in question were the only ones who seemed unfazed.

"Yes, Lord Megatron." A collective shudder raced through the gathered mechs. They all recognized Megatron's designation, and it made them think of how sweet their voices would sound, calling out the own names. Even the warlord seemed affected. Skywarp and Thundercracker looked murderous.

"Decepticons, move out!"

* * *

Starscream sat quietly in the Autobot brig. The last battle had gone poorly and a lucky shot from the little sniper had knocked him out of the sky. Thankfully, the Autobot medic had some compassion and his damaged thruster had been repaired. Now all he had to do was wait for Megatron to barter for his release. He had a feeling he was going to be here for a while. Hopefully his mates wouldn't do anything stupid, like try to retrieve him on their own.

The door to the brig opened, admitting the large red weapons master. The mech didn't spare him a glance; his simply told the guard on duty, Blaster, that his shift was over and that he was to be relieved by the twins. Joy. Two mechs with one spark and half a CPU between them.

The mentioned pair entered the brig shortly after. Ironhide gave them their instructions – don't let him out, don't watch videos while on duty, don't make prank calls to the Chief of Police again unless you want to spend time in the brig – before he and the tape deck left. It was silent for all of two breems.

"Sooooo, how's it going, Screamer?" The Air Commander looked at the red hellion with disinterest.

"It was much better before you two numb nodes came in. Not only am I imprisoned, but I am to be tortured too? I thought Autobots were above that." The two mechs stared at him blankly. Sideswipe turned to his brother.

"Any idea what the frag he just said?"

"No," Sunstreaker scowled. He recognized some of the words, but Starscream had spoken too quickly to catch them all.

"I'm not surprised. After all, having only half a CPU must make simple things like polishing oneself difficult. Judging from the looks of you it has been a long time since either of you saw a polishing cloth." Sunstreaker growled. He knew there was an insult in there about not looking his best.

"What the frag Screamer? Speak in English for Primus' sake!" Sideswipe was irritated. He had been looking forward to baiting the volatile seeker, but _they_ were the ones getting riled up. It wasn't fair to insult them in a language they couldn't speak!

Starscream smiled. It was a beautiful smile, one that they had never seen before. It lit up the seeker's face, turning him from gorgeous to extraordinary. He purred a single word.

"No." Both brothers recognized that word. They were slightly embarrassed to realize that they no longer understood most of their home language. Pit, they hadn't even realized that Starscream had been speaking Cybertronian in the first place!

"Sideswipe to Prowl."

"What is it, Sideswipe?"

"Can you still speak Cybertronian?"

"Of course," the tactician sounded irritated. "Is there a point to this?"

"Yeah, we have no idea what Starscream is saying."

* * *

Prowl was a no nonsense mech. Starscream appreciated it. He also enjoyed the fact that the Autobot was fluent in Cybertronian. He had an almost unnoticeable Praxian accent. It was a nice change from his own Vosian and Soundwave's Kaonite. That did not mean, however, that he was willing to give up any information.

"It is good to hear our home language again. Not many still speak it," Prowl confessed. Starscream snorted.

"The Decepticons have all but abandoned it. Pit, they can't even understand us when we speak now."

"We?"

"Soundwave and I. It's pathetic."

"Ah. That explains why Blitzwing was in command. Flyer though he is, he has no understanding of seeker flight patterns and tactics. What was Megatron thinking?" Starscream relaxed slightly. Prowl wasn't asking him anything incriminating; instead he seemed to be just as disgusted with Megatron as Starscream was. The disdain in his cultured voice amused the Air Commander.

"It was to spite us. I suppose you noticed how uncoordinated our ground troops were? Soundwave is a comminucation specialist; Reflector is not." The conversation continued in that vein, both mechs noting the crowd that had gathered in the brig but deemed it unimportant. Jazz was watching – if it was an issue he would take care of it.

* * *

The saboteur was amused. Word had gotten out about Screamer's exotic voice. Prowl's usual monotone had also gained a pleasant tenor, but no mech as foolish enough to let their optics linger on the SIC with Jazz nearby. They enjoyed living, thank you very much.

Starscream, on the other servo, was a novelty. Even Jazz had to admit he enjoyed the smooth vocals, even if he did think his Prowler had a much sweeter voice. But a number of these mechs were supposed to be on duty. Better wrap this up before they started defecting.

"All right mechs, get outta here. I know some of y'all are on duty. I'd hate tah have tah cancel the party next orn." A few of the Autobots seemed to be weighting the pros and cons of staying anyway. A flash of Jazz's blue visor had them reluctantly shuffling out of the brig and back to work.

"Got yerself a fan club, Screamer." Jazz's Polyhexian accent caught the Decepticon's attention.

"Off course I do," the seeker purred. "There is a reason Megatron rarely let me speak to anyone other than my seekers on Cybertron. And don't call me that." The saboteur moved to stand next to his mate. Enemy or not, it was nice to see Prowl enjoy himself. Of the Autobots, only he, Prowl, Mirage and Optimus still fluently spoke Cybertronian.

"Then I assume you are going to be our guest for a while longer? The crew will be thrilled." Prowl's voice was dry.

"Mmm, no, I don't think so."

"Oh?" The seeker just smiled. Prowl, sensing he would get nothing further from the seeker, summoned Huffer and Gears for guard duty. The twins volunteered, but that would be a disaster. They already had a fetish for seekers.

"Well," Jazz said after they had left the brig, "that was interesting."

"Indeed." It wasn't the superficial conversation that had mattered; it was the subtleties, the things the Air Commander probably hadn't even realized he'd let slip.

* * *

Soundwave was annoyed. The battle had been a spectacular failure, his friend had been captured and his Lord was obtuse. The seekers were close to mutiny if their Prince wasn't retrieved – and that wasn't taking into account said Prince's _mates_ – but Megatron actually seemed delighted to be free of his Air Commander, and in no hurry to get him back. On top of that mechs kept leering at him and his own creations wouldn't stop snickering!

Reaching his destination, Soundwave waited patiently for the occupants to answer. Thundercracker appeared, ugly scowl marring his beautiful face. It softened when he saw the cassette player. Stepping back, he motioned for the sapphire mech to enter.

"What can we do for you, Soundwave?"

"Mission: Retrieve Starscream."

"How?" Skywarp asked from where he lay sprawled, sulking on the berth. "What can we do? They have antiwarp technology around the ship."

"Soundwave: Will provide distraction. Demand to speak to Starscream. Ravage: will monitor hallways. Watch for Starscream's transfer. When signal is received, Skywarp will intercept."

"But won't the antiwarp shields keep Sky from getting in?" Thundercracker asked.

"Negative. Damaged. Currently only around Brig, Command Center and personal quarters." The purple seeker nodded his understanding.

"Why are you helping us? I mean, I get that you're friends with Star, but you never disobey Megatron." Thundercracker couldn't help being suspicious.

"Lord Megatron: irrational. Morale: suffering."

"Che, yeah. Buckethead's pissed that the mechs actually prefer listening to Scree now," Skywarp smirked. As much as the lustful attention directed at Starscream irked him, Skywarp was insanely proud of his mate. They both were. Soundwave smiled slightly.

"Yes." A telepathic call from Ratbat had Soundwave cut the conversation short. "I am needed. Be ready at 0600 local time," he said, slipping into a more natural pattern of speech. He could trust these mechs not to reveal that he could do so.

"Yes sir." Thundercracker showed the mech out. Before he left a hand on his arm stopped him.

"Soundwave? Thank you."

After fishing Ratbat out of the vents Soundwave headed for his quarters. The young cassette, sensing his creator's weariness, volunteered to go on patrol with Ravage, meaning he'd have the room to himself.

"Soundwave! May I have a word?" Sighing internally, the telepath turned to face Blitzwing. He inclined his head, giving permission.

"What I have to say is rather…sensitive. Is there somewhere we can speak privately?" his room was empty. He was extremely uncomfortable with bringing anyone into his private space but he was tired and wanted to recharge. Perhaps if he had been more aware he would have picked up the other mech's intent.

"Blitzwing. Follow."


	4. Chapter 4

He watched from the shadows, shaking in fury as Soundwave guided the much larger mech into his quarters. How could Soundwave not know?! Blitzwing was one of the biggest players on the Nemesis! He was only interested in getting a mech into the berth, taking everything he had to give, and then abandoning him like so much trash. Soundwave was a gifted telepath; how could he not sense the mech's intentions? He wanted to get in there, to tear the triplechanger away from the socially stunted mech. But, he had no reason to even be in this wing, and the third-in-command was a grown mech, able to make his own decisions. He should walk away. He should.

He couldn't.

Blitzwing was not a mech who took rejection well, if Soundwave turned him down. And he was much stronger than the sapphire mech.

Thinking quickly, he sent one of his team to create a reason that Soundwave would be needed immediately elsewhere in the ship. He waited impatiently until he got the confirmation, and then approached Soundwave's quarters. Knocking on the door he waited for a moment. There was no response. Feeling uneasy, he commed his superior, priority two. Still no reply. No matter what he was engaged in Soundwave never ignored priority comms. A loud crash shook the walls, causing the mech to jump. The door flew open, and he stepped to the side, watching in amazement as Blitzwing's heavy, offline form was unceremoniously dumped in the hall. A garnet visor glittered brightly, staring at him in a way that was almost feral. A shudder ran down the lower ranking mech's struts, but he did his best to suppress it. He met the burning gaze evenly, nodding in greeting before saying,

"I hope I am not disturbing anything, Commander, but you are needed on the lower decks. Apparently, there has been a security breach of unknown origin." He would have to ask and see if that was true, or if one of his mechs had fabricated it on short notice. Soundwave visibly calmed himself, intakes leveling, and the cold, aloof mask snapping into place.

"Soundwave: understands." Although the other mech couldn't see it, the telepath was very glad to have something to occupy his time now. He was shaken and angry, and did not want to be alone. Any hint of exhaustion was long gone. Casually stepping over the prone body blocking his door, he joined the other commander as they headed to the breach.

Unfortunately, the breech was an easy fix, a remnant from one of the Autobot spies, most likely, that one of the Decepticons had exacerbated somehow. It only took a few breems to straighten out. Soundwave wasn't sure, but he thought it was the somewhat desperate desire to avoid his quarters (and creations - how was he going to explain this to them?) that had him asking,

"Onslaught: energon required?" Onslaught smiled behind his mask, basking in the musical timbre.

"Yes."

* * *

Starscream stared up at the ceiling, bored. He was well-fed for once, and he'd done practically nothing but rest. However, his processor was far from idle. He ran through complex formulas from his time in the Academy, thought about his travels to exotic worlds with Skyfire (who he was thankful had not come to visit - he suspected the Praxian's mate was involved in that), and even went over every flawed weapon his idiotic lord had had built. The purple griffin received almost a breem to itself, simply because it was an abomination that Starscream enjoyed mocking. If he hadn't known better he would have sworn that Megatron had been on an acid-energon trip when he dreamed that up.

But these thoughts only entertained him for so long, and didn't do much to distract him from the real issue - he missed his mates. He hadn't been separated from them for more than a few joors since before they left Cybertron. Megatron had tried to take them away once; he had woken up in medbay with Starscream by his side, dark ruby optics staring at him from a blank face. Hook had explained to the tyrant that he had consumed a near fatal dose of tainted energon, but they weren't sure of the source. Megatron was no fool, and had beaten his second nearly to deactivation. He had never tried to separate the Elite Trine again however.

Sometimes Starscream wondered if it would have been better to kill the commander when he'd had the chance. All it would have taken was slightly more of the rust additive, and nothing would have been able to keep the fragger's insides from corroding. But at the time he had still believed in the Cause, if not in their Leader - he still did. And as much as he hated to say it, the Decepticons would fall apart without their master. It was part of the reason he had never honestly tried to kill the Warlord. Almost everyone forgot that he was a scientist; whipping up an untraceable poison may be Mixmaster's field, but Starscream was not to be trifled with. Soundwave had known, had kept an incredibly close (irritating) optic on him, but Starscream had sensed a frustration in his new friend as of late. Maybe the loyalty wasn't as set in stone as it seemed. After all, he had been like Soundwave once, and Megatron had managed to drive him away; it was not improbable that he would do the same to his Third.

Sighing, he gave up that line of thought. He would talk about it with his trine when he saw them again. Thinking of them brought on a wave of melancholy. He tried to fight it, not willing to show weakness in front of his Autobot guard. It didn't work. Instead, he thought about being curled up with them, of Skywarp begging him to sing them into recharge when the war got bad early on. The teleporter seldom asked for it anymore, but it always seemed to comfort him; maybe it would work for Starscream.

The Air Commander picked 'Warp's favorite lullaby, humming softly at first. As he picked up the melody he began to sing, not caring if the little guard heard him. It was an old Vosian lullaby, one his carrier had sung to him as a mechlet. Offlining his optics, he focused on the words, pretending he wasn't curled up on the hard pad in an Autobot cell but sandwiched between his mates.

"I know that song," a quiet voice interrupted. Optics flashing online, Starscream tensed and stared hard at the Autobot. It was another Praxian, mostly gray with blue accents. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to interrupt; it's just that song is very familiar, I don't know where I know if from, but it's really soothing, is it from Vos? Because Vos was close to Praxus, so I might have heard it there, but then again the seekers didn't seem to like us did they, so I don't know if we would have heard it from you or not although I'm not sure why you didn't like us but I guess it doesn't matter can you sing it louder?"

Starscream blinked at the torrent of words. Offense raced through him at the implied words - it had been Praxus that attacked Vos! The seekers had had no problem with their kin until the first bombs fell. But then this one looked very young; maybe he didn't know.

"I caught about half of that. Repeat the last part - just the last part!" Starscream said when it looked like the Autobot would start rambling again. The young face screwed up in concentration, words sounding stilted.

"Will you...sing... louder please."

"What's wrong with your vocalizer?" Starscream asked instead. It was rude, but his curiosity got the better of him. It had to be some kind of glitch. The young mech either babbled or could barely force the words out.

"Nothing!" Bluestreak cried, "It's English! It's so minimalistic compared to Cybertronian and I know what I want to say but I can never find the words because English doesn't have them so then I babble and I know it irritates mechs, but when I try to explain I just make it worse, and no one know how to help! Prowl and Jazz try but they can't be there to translate for me all the time, and I don't want to be a burden, so I've never really asked anyone else and I don't know what to do! I'm sorry you probably don't care." Bluestreak darted backwards, away from the cell, mortified that he had ranted about personal problems to an enemy. The solution was obvious to Starscream.

"So speak in Cybertronian, and they will adapt or lose out." Not wanting to get into a more detailed discussion with the Praxian, Starscream started singing. He offlined his optics, and knowing that he had an audience helped, even if it wasn't his trine. Starscream sang until he drifted into recharge.

* * *

Most mechs would say if asked, that patience was not among Skywarp's –rather remarkable – list of talents. Those mechs would only be partially right. Skywarp had patience to spare when it suited him. If it bored him, he saw no reason to waste time that could be better spent on more enjoyable activities. Setting up a prank (read: getting revenge), coaxing Starscream out of the labs or away from the dusty tomes he enjoyed reading, convincing Thundercracker to fly with him at mach two through Devil's Canyon… now those he could spend forever and a joor doing. Listening to Autodorks rave about how delectable his mate sounded speaking Cybertronian, well, it was a good thing Thundercracker was there to hold him back. They got enough of this on the Nemesis and now they had to listen to it here too!? Fraggers were going to die. Just as soon as his blue mate let go of his wingtip.

::Enough!:: Said mate hissed at the volatile seeker, ::I'm just as angry as you are but if we get caught now we will never get Star out. You can get revenge later!:: That settled the younger flyer somewhat. It shifted his considerable processing power (and yes, he was very intelligent, thank you very much; not every mech could calculate vectors, flight speed, warp coordinates and such in under a miliklik while a battle raged around them) away from murder and mayhem to a more _deliberate _form of punishment. Oh yes, he would plan something spectacular. Thundercracker would probably help. Right now the blue seeker was just grateful that he had managed to distract his mate. Skywarp was more than a little unhinged by all the attention Starscream had been receiving lately.

No mech in their right mind would deny that the Air Commander was a gorgeous seeker. He was all sleek curves, bright, beautiful wings, and deliciously angled faceplates. Add to that the immense processing power, deadly skills in the sky and harmonic voice, he was Pit near perfect. But since their arrival on Earth mechs had been turned off by the screeching. Cybertronians had delicate audial equipment and the horrid mess that Star's vocalizer produced trying to speak the mangled language had been so great that most mechs could not stand to hear him speak. It had led to ridicule and disobedience. The SIC had not taken that well. He had raged at the crew which worsened the cycle until Star had become the most hated mech on the ship. Now he respected once again; mechs listened to him speak (although most had no idea what he was saying) and often sought him out for advice (which they couldn't understand). Thundercracker and Skywarp were proud of their mate and that he was working to revive their forgotten language. But the unwanted sexual attention and propositions were beginning to wear on them. The fact that Star was so damn oblivious just compounded the issue. For a mech who was so smart, he sure could pick the weirdest things to overlook.

Thundercracker did have to admit that he appreciated the friendship between his lover and Soundwave. Once the mechs quit bickering and found some common ground a surprising camaraderie had blossomed. They had spent more time in the sound system's company, and while they didn't always understand everything the pair was saying, it was great to see a genuine smile on their scientist's face outside of their quarters. Plus, the younglings were adorable, though torture couldn't drag that out of either of the Wing Second and Third. The loyalty that Soundwave had to those he cared about was amazing; he had defied their Lord. It was thanks to that defiance that they were here now, hidden in the shadows of the brig, waiting for a good time to swoop in and steal back their mate. It made the blue seeker wonder if Soundwave was really all that loyal to the mech, or if it was a show meant to appease the dangerous tyrant.

::Look TC, the little Autobrat is falling into recharge!:: Skywarp squealed excitedly over their bond. Sure enough, the gunner's optics flickered before going dark. Starscream lay on his back on the sparse berth, staring blankly up at the gaudy ceiling. He had been quiet and still for several breems now. The guard must have felt safe enough to recharge. Thundercracker prodded their bond.

::Starscream.:: The multicolored seeker sat up and looked around the brig. He knew his mates were close by. They had to be for Thunder to sound so clear. Stretching his arms above his head, he pretended to shift around as though trying to get comfortable. That fragging security director was probably watching. It wouldn't do to tip him off to the unexpected visitors.

::Thundercracker? Skywarp?:: The Cybertronian glyphs were almost purred over the bond, laced with their trine leader's pleasure at their presence.

::We're here Star. I can't warp in and get you; the shields were down enough around the brig that I could get in, but not enough to get into the cell. We are going to have to move fast when they transport you to get you out of here.::

::No need. I watched them input the code to the cell when they brought me back. The young one isn't all that fast at it. It's Primus Omega Zero Zero Binary Alpha Delta. Don't wake the youngling. The last thing we need is a flood of Autobots thinking we are attacking their precious sniper.::

::You got it babe,:: Skywarp rumbled. Starscream fought back a scowl.

::If you continue to use foul human endearments I will ban you from our berth for the next one hundred vorns.:: Skywarp pouted but didn't comment. The mercurial seeker would do it in a spark pulse.

Thundercracker calmly slide out of the darkened corner and made his way over to the cell. The force field came down soundlessly, and Starscream was quick to exit. He pressed a quick kiss to Thunder's lips before moving away and letting Skywarp guide them out of the anti-teleportation shield.

A moment later the trine disappeared from the Ark just as the alarms began blaring, jolting a rather startled Bluestreak out of recharge.

* * *

Megatron stared at the viewscreen, intently. His third-in-command had literally thrown a mech nearly twice his size out of his room. The Constructicons had to be called to fix the damage done to the floor. It had been a long time since he had seen a demonstration of his Third's abilities. The mech was dangerous. He had forgotten that. And now he had an alliance with Starscream. Not only was that fragging seeker turning his army into a pack of turbohounds begging for a chance to hear the traitor speak now his telepath's loyalties were in question. And he still couldn't slagging understand them! They could be plotting his assassination in plain view and no one on the blasted ship could tell! He had to do something about this. Immediately. And if that meant reorganizing the chain of command to fill some… vacancies, well, so be it.


	5. Chapter 5

The room was completely dark, silent but for the quiet sounds of the ocean pressing against the damaged ship. The peaceful silence was interrupted by the flash of purple that preceded the arrival of three winged mechs. They stumbled as their pedes hit the floor, two of the seekers guiding the third toward their berth. The third seeker moved easily, laughing melodiously as his mates nuzzled against him. Starscream let himself fall backwards onto the berth as Thundercracker and Skywarp subjected him to a thorough inspection. When they were satisfied their Star was undamaged they let him rest, each curling into his sides, linking digits over his canopy.

"Missed you so much Scree. So so much."Starscream smiled and placed a chaste kiss on Skywarp's helm.

"Missed you too, Glitch," he purred affectionately. "Thanks for coming after me."

"Always, Star." Thundercracker's deep baritone rolled through them. Starscream smiled at the sound of his nickname tagged with those glyphs. _Lovedevotionforever_ warmed his spark and he treated his mate to a deep kiss.

"Hey, no fair!" Skywarp whined, before trying to steal his trineleader's lips. A brief tussle ensued before Skywarp and Thundercracker ended up in a lip lock of their own as Starscream watched hungrily.

The door sliding open quickly had them jerking apart as three sets of optics focused on the tiny form in the doorway.

"Ratbat, what are you doing out of your quarters? And how did you get our passcode?" Starscream asked as Skywarp stood from the berth. The small cassette shuffled into the room awkwardly, clearly wanting to speak but not sure how to ask for what he wanted. Skywarp approached the tiny mech and scooped him up, making the youngling giggle.

"Can I stay here for a while? Soundwave is busy with Onslaught and my brothers are being loud. Oh, and I got the code from Frenzy." The little flier's optics went wide. "Please don't be mad at him! He didn't mean to steal it, didn't even think he could hack your door but he wanted to try because you have lots of security and he was really surprised when it worked!"

"Hush youngling, we are not mad at him, but we will have to have words with him about respecting privacy," Thundercracker soothed Soundwave's youngling as Skywarp brought the flyer to the berth.

"Please don't tell him I told you?" The youngest of the brood asked in a small voice.

"Very well," Starscream answered for his mate, "he will not find out from us. Now, you may stay here for a while, but only until Soundwave is finished with Onslaught." The bat-shaped cassette pouted, but nodded in acceptance. He liked Starscream and his trine! His brothers were often too busy doing grown up things to play with him, but sometimes when Soundwave would visit Starscream and his trine he would bring Ratbat. The seekers would always play with him! Occasionally they would even give him goodies!

A quick comm call to Soundwave had everything settled, and the youngling settled comfortably on the berth.

"Will you tell me a story?" Bright red optics looked hopefully up at the second in command. Starscream had the prettiest voice besides Soundwave, and he would do all the different characters too. Thundercracker and Skywarp would also add their own voices, as fluent in Cybertronian as their mate's, and then the story would be really fun! Giving a theatrical sigh, Starscream asked,

"Which story do you want to hear?"

* * *

Soundwave was on his way to pick up the youngest of his offspring. He had just spent an enjoyable orn conversing with the leader of the Combaticons. He had had no idea Onslaught was such a fascinating conversationalist! The mech was intelligent, sarcastic, and had even made an attempt to speak in their native language. Albeit, he had sounded stilted, but with practice that would change. Soundwave was surprised to find that he would be more than willing to help the gestalt commander practice.

At one point Swindle had wandered into the Rec Room and plopped down beside his brother. The younger mech had looked dead on his pedes and had pressed himself into his brother's side before dropping into recharge. Rather than be embarrassed the massive mech had simply wrapped his arm around his recharging brother. Soundwave, although he would never admit it, was touched by the sight. Family was a very important part of his life and he would not stand for a partner who did not share a similar mindset in this. That thought had thrown him for a loop. Partner? He absolutely was not looking for a partner, no matter how his traitorous spark warmed at the thought. Despite these disconcerting thoughts he had made plans to speak with Onslaught again in the next cycle. And his spark had absolutely not just skipped a beat.

Arriving at the trine's quarters the communications officer pinged for entry. A moment later the door slid back to reveal his youngest settled on Skywarp's lap, completely enthralled in Starscream and Thundercracker's retelling of _The Cyberfox and Turbohound_. The mechling was giggling as Thundercracker chased the Air Commander around the room, pretending to be the 'hound chasing the 'fox. Both mechs froze when the door opened before turning identical dark looks on their mate, who smile back innocently. Starscream straightened up and gestured Soundwave into the room with dignity, ignoring the sapphire mech's poorly hidden chuckles.

"Thank you for looking after Ratbat," Soundwave said. The youngling scampered out of the purple seeker's hold. He leapt for his creator, burrowing into his chassis contently.

"It was our pleasure," Starscream answered on behalf of the trine. "He was no problem." Soundwave smiled behind his mask. Even a quarter vorn ago a scene like this would have been unthinkable. Not only were he and Starscream getting along – he would even go so far as to call them friends - but he trusted them enough to look after his most precious of treasures. All of his sparklings liked the seekers now, and would often seek them out. And the seekers themselves never turned them away. Occasionally the sound system would catch a glimpse of wistfulness in their optics, as though they wished for sparklings of their own. That would not happen in the near future however. Even if it was feasible to raise newsparks during a war Megatron would never allow it. Another mark against the tyrant. Speaking of…

"I am glad you returned safely, Starscream. A word of warning however; Megatron is in a foul mood. I would wait a while before venturing anywhere near him." Starscream nodded solemnly.

"Thank you, my friend."

"You are welcome. Now," he addressed his youngling, "I do believe it is time for a nap."

"Aww! But Creator, I am not tired!" the little flier said as he fought back a yawn. Soundwave would hear no protests however, and bid the trine goodbye.

Once again alone in their quarters the seekers were quick to pick up where they had left off before Ratbat's impromptu visit.

* * *

Megatron raged as he watched the video of his third in command conversing in Cybertronian with that traitor Onslaught. He was even more convinced that Starscream had turned the once loyal mech against him. Why else would the sapphire mech converse in a language his Master couldn't understand with a mech loyal to Starscream?! He would have to do something to show the mech the error of his ways.

A cruel idea occurred to him as he surveyed the damage he had done to his personal quarters. He couldn't touch Starscream, not yet, as the only thing that would break him would be to lose his mates, who were both formidable warriors. It would take time and planning to get rid of them. Soudnwave, however, had six unprotected assets he could use as an example. But which one? Ravage and Lazerbeak were both good spies who provided valuable intel about the Autobots. He could not replace them easily, so they were safe. Ratbat, while ideal for his purpose, was too young. Megatron himself did not care, but there were mechs in the army who looked down on harming, let alone killing, younglings. He did not want to risk a mutiny. Buzzsaw and Rumble were highly effective warriors who could potentially put up enough of a fight to stall until help arrived. That left Frenzy. The obnoxious little mech was a superb hacker, but so was Soundwave. He did not need two of them. And the younger twin was not the fighter his brother was. Yes, he would do nicely. Soundwave would regret crossing him. And if he continued on the same path after this lesson, well he didn't really need two spies.


	6. Chapter 6

"He ordered WHAT?" Starscream shrieked over the laughter of his trinemates. Soundwave, who had just delivered the repulsive news, looked equally unhappy.

"Lord Megatron has ordered that you, Starscream, teach lessons on speaking Cybertronian. I am to assist you. Apparently, we have caused enough of a distraction with our 'antics'."

"Antics, he calls them. He has reduced our beautiful language to nothing more than _antics_. Barbarian." Starscream hissed, shooting a foul look at his cackling mates. Skywarp was laughing so hard he was unable to stand without support from Thundercracker, who at least was trying to keeping his laughter hidden. Starscream was in no mood to acknowledge that, however. "You two have one klik to shut the frag up or I will banish you from out berth for the next ten vorns." Immediately the seekers stopped laughing, but Skywarp was unable to completely stifle his giggles.

"C'mon Scree, you have got to admit it's kind of funny. I mean, you aren't exactly the teaching type."

"It's not as though anyone is gunna listen to the lesson," Frenzy chimed in. The youngling was seated on the floor, watching Ravage try to feed Rumble his own arm. Dumb fragger shoulda known better than to antagonize the kitty cat. The adults were completely ignoring the scene, considering it was a very common occurrence. "Those slaggers are just gunna stare at you and pretend that you're talking to them in a berth room voice."

"Frenzy!" Soundwave snapped, light pink energon flooding pale faceplates. He had gotten into the habit of removing his facemask around the seekers. It altered his voice too much, and he found that he didn't like the robotic way he spoke with it. It blocked far too many of the nuances common in Cybertronian speech. That was fine for dealing with the soldiers, but not for those he had deemed to be friends.

"What? It's totally true!" the young mech looked up at his creator, completely unrepentant.

"It really is 'Wave – _ow Ravage, leggo!_ – cuz, you know, you're all good lookin' and –_I am going to kill you!_ – and Cybertronian is way nicer than the disgusting earth languages – _ha! take that! _– so they all have these fantasies and crap." Rumble finally managed to get away from his older brother through use of an admittedly cheap shot. "The latest one is about bagging a seeker trine." Immediately three sets of engines started growling darkly and Soundwave buried his face in his hands. Surprisingly, it was Thundercracker who reacted first.

"Fragging perverts think they can touch _my_ mates do they? Let them try I will rip them limb from fragging limb and then shove it up their afts!" The lyrical voice descended into incoherent snarling as two sets of limbs wrapped around their shaking mate. Starscream and Skywarp cooed softly, attempting to calm the possessive mech as Soundwave's family watched in stunned silence. After a long moment Thundercracker calmed, turning to press his face into Skywarp's neck. It had been a long time since he had lost control like that. Not since the first attempted theft of his mates had occurred in Vos, in fact. He would not tolerate such an infringement again. And, from the dark look in his mates' optics, neither would they.

"So I'm thinking that maybe Thunder shouldn't attend your class tonight. That's just _asking _for a bloodbath." Skywarp grinned, trying to break the tension. The younglings giggled nervously. "Hey maybe he can younglingsit! You lot can ask him all about the time he got stuck in that…" A dark hand clamped over the teleporter's mouth, silencing the embarrassing story.

"Hey!" Frenzy protested. "We wanted to hear that!" Thundercracker resolutely did not look at the pouting youngling. He did, however, make the mistake of looking down at Ravage when the oldest of the siblings stalked forward to rub against his pede. Eldest or not, that youngling could pout as well as any of his brothers. It took all of the flyer's willpower to look away. Ravage huffed in amusement.

"The offer is appreciated, but unnecessary. Ravage, Lazerbeak and Buzzsaw will be on patrol, and I will have Ratbat with me. Rumble and Frenzy are, theoretically, old enough to be on their own for a short time. Tonight will determine if they are able to be trusted to be alone without destroying my quarters… like last time." The twins protested this statement, saying they had only made a little mess while their siblings smirked at them. The seekers grinned, happy to have been invited into the telepath's home. It was a safe zone, their quarters and Soundwave's, a place that they could retreat to when the imbeciles they worked with became too much. Both rooms had been declared a "Cybertronian Only Zone" and not even Megatron bothered them there. Of course, they were unsure whether or not the titan was even aware of these meetings, but that was beside the point.

* * *

"No, you fools! I cannot believe I have to teach you fragging sentence structure! When building sentence you start with the subject, followed by the place, person, object and verb! Why are all of you so incompetent?! The subject only comes directly before a verb in English!"

Soundwave observed the gesticulating seeker with amusement. The "class" had been running for about three kliks and Starscream looked ready to massacre them all. Albeit, some mechs were trying (and Soundwave would not acknowledge that he was pleased to note that Onslaught was one of them) but most of the soldiers were clearly not paying attention to anything other than the melodious sounds of a ranting seeker. Some of the more brazen had taking to asking stupid questions, not only of Starscream, but Soundwave and Skywarp as well. So far the younger seeker had simply giggled, while the sapphire mech had refused to answer at all, but he could feel his level of ire rising. He had no wish to be here, and even less desire to deal with the common rabble that was here for fantasy fodder. He stoutly ignored the little voice that said he wouldn't mind giving private lessons to a certain gestalt leader.

A loud crash startled the ground mech out of his reverie. Looking up, he watched as Starscream calmly stepped over the paralyzed body of a large tank.

"Now, someone else tell me how to correctly conjugate the verb "to walk". If you mess it up I will shoot you." The class stayed silent. This was not what they had expected. At a pointed look from the irate seeker Soundwave sighed and gave the correct answer. Satisfied, Starscream turned to his trinemate and demanded that he complete a conjugation as well. Smirking cheekily the black seeker did so, and the unwilling instructor turned his attention back to his "class".

"Soundwave and Skywarp just gave you a demonstration on how to conjugate. Skywarp even used his correctly in a sentence. Now, I hope you were paying attention because I am going to give you a written exam. You will pass with at least sixty percent of the answers correct, or I will shoot you. This is the last time that I will speak this foul language in these lessons. Begin when you get your test." The evil smile on the Air Commander's face did not bode well for his "students." Soundwave was glad he had decided to record this lesson. Thundercracker and the telepath's own creations would find it hilarious, he was sure.

* * *

Being alone was boring. The twins had not expected that. Sure, they had the place to themselves, but there were only so many times one could watch old vids, arm wrestle or raid your siblings' belongings. Even playing the contraband game system had gotten tiring. They had beaten every level, like a million times before. Soundwave would ground them for a vorn if they decided to…redecorate their living quarters once again. The screams they could hear echoing from several levels up had stopped being entertaining half a groon ago.

"Dude, I am so fragging bored." Rumble groaned as he flopped down onto his berth, throwing an arm over his optics dramatically.

"What do you want me to do about it?" Frenzy snapped. "I don't have any ideas."

"Well, can you at least go get us some energon? The dispenser's still broken from when Lazerbeak threw Buzzsaw into it."

"Why can't you? You're the one who is bored. Lazy aft."

"Because you're my little brother and you love me?"

"I'm younger by half a klik!"

"Still makes you the baby bro, bro." Cocking a brow ridge at his brother, Frenzy asked,

"And you think this is the way to talk me into getting you energon?"

"Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeease?" the blue twin whined obnoxiously. Throwing his hands into the air, the red twin gave in.

"Fine. But you so owe me."

"Sure sure. Whatever you want. Now get me food! I think my tank is starting to eat itself." Throwing a filthy look at his brother, Frenzy gestured rudely before heading into the hall. He'd place credits on Rumble being asleep by the time he got back. Distracted by these thoughts and his own hunger, the youngling failed to notice the large shadow stalking him through the halls.

* * *

Thundercracker was recharging. It was that or sulk about how his mates were in a room with a bunch of perverts who wanted to get them into the berth. Skywarp had been right when he had said Thundercracker showing up at the lesson would lead to a murder. He was no stranger to jealousy, but usually he was better at controlling it. He was the calm, centered focus compared to Starscream's temper and Skywarp's mischievous nature. But he was not blind to the looks that his trinemates garnered, even more so now that they were back to speaking their native languages. The fraggers would probably cream themselves if they heard either of his mates speaking Vosian. In truth however, it was the lust filled stares that he himself was getting now that he had given up speaking the filthy human language. Yes, his deep bass was pleasing, but not so much that he should be the focus of such desire. The sound manipulator was confused, and masking it with rage. Things that he did not understand were a danger to his mates. He had learned that lesson the hard way and would never make that mistake again.

A frantic comm call jolted him out of his rest.

"What is it, Rumble?" He mumbled sleepily.

"Frenzy's gone!" The words were difficult to make out through the youngling's hysteria. "He went to get energon ages ago and I fell into recharge but I woke up because he disappeared from my spark and he won't answer my calls and I can't get a hold of Soundwave because his comms are off and I don't know what to do!" Now wide awake Thundercracker sprang into action.

"Alright listen to me Rumble. Stay in the room. I will contact your brothers and have Ravage fetch Soundwave. I am going to go down to the mess hall and see if I can find Frenzy. Do not answer the door for anything other than your brothers or creator, understand?"

"Yes," Rumble sniffled.

"Good." Cutting the call, Thundercracker immediately contacted the rest of Soundwave's creations. Ravage immediately abandoned his post, running full speed for his creator, while the fliers headed home. Thundercracker set off for the mess hall, but was quickly distracted by faint screams coming from an abandoned service hall. The voice sounded young and as though the owner was in great pain. Without hesitating the wing second turned into the dark hallway and made his way to the voice. He was horrified to find Frenzy's bloody body sprawled across the floor, energon staining it and the walls. The youngling's optics were barely online, and faint, broken whimpers came from his vocalizer. Putting in an urgent comm call to the med bay the seeker scooped up the youngling and turned to leave the abandoned corridor. He never saw the enraged glowing optics or the shot that hit him in the back. He barely had the presence of mind to curl his massive body around his precious cargo, protecting the dying youngling from further harm. Another shot struck him, sending the elite seeker into darkness.


End file.
